No more speculation. No more previews. E3 2012 as officially kicked off and the floodgates have opened. Every hour brings us new trailers, exciting bits and pieces concerning long gestating projects, press conferences from all the big name developers and, of course, a steady stream of booth babes pictures from convention goers. Games, hardware and chicks! It’s a gamer nirvana!

Splinter Cell: Blacklist

First the bad news: Michael Ironside is no longer voicing Sam Fisher. What the frakk? Come the hell on, Ubisoft!! There is NO Splinter Cell without Ironside’s world-weary line delivery and unique voice. Sigh… Ok, minor nerd rant aside, and judging from the trailer and game play footage newly released, Splinter Cell seems to be continuing its swerve from stealthy game with action sequences to action heavy shooter with some stealth elements thrown in. As always, I’m sure the story will be worth the purchase but, as a long time series admirer, I can’t help but be wary of this new direction Ubisoft is taking the series in.

Dead Space 3

That is officially the most atmospheric trailer I’ve ever seen. While no game play is presented, the still images of familiar Dead Space iconography with frightening voiceovers serves to send chills down your spine. Any speculation on the story is just talk at this point but the trailer seems to hint at a more planet-based plot. With Resident Evil now firmly entrenched in the third person shooter genre, Dead Space is now the premier franchise on the block for scares. With the limits of spaceships and space stations gone, can we expect a more open world design? Only time will tell. There’s no firm release date, the 2012 Holiday season seems a safe bet.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted

Gaming’s premier cops and speeders franchise makes a glorious return to form with the simply titled Need For Speed: Most Wanted. Developer Criterion previously released my favorite entry in the Need For Speed series, 2010’s Hot Pursuit. Avoiding pursuing cop cars, or chasing reckless speeders, whichever side suits your fancy the most, Criterion looks poised to deliver another astounding burst of adrenaline with Most Wanted. Scheduled for a Holiday season release.

Medal Of Honor: Warfighter

Medal Of Honor, despite its many strengths, as always played second fiddle to the elephant in the room: Call Of Duty. While both games are similar on the surface, featuring white knuckle, mostly realistic, modern-day military combat, fans have flocked in droves to Activision’s franchise instead of EA’s. Electronic Arts is striving to upset this status quo with the sequel to 2010’s reboot of the Medal Of Honor series. Starring characters from groups with more acronyms that you can shake a bayonet at (SEALS, SAS, SOG, KSK, GROM, SPETSNAZ, etc…) Warfighter is getting ready to charge the front lines somewhere around Halloween 2012.

About Yell! Magazine

Formed in September 2010, Yell! Magazine set out to dominate the worlds of Heavy Metal, Horror/Sci-fi movies, MMA fighting, and hardcore Video Games. When you get into the specifics of these niche interests, we’re confident that you’ll appreciate Yell! Magazine for bringing all these bloody interests together in one place. Read More